Bullet

[ModernDayWarrior]

I went to an old ghost town today and found this bullet. Does anybody know much about bullets?

 

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[The Beep Goes On]

Glad you got out today. Can you add something for scale, or give us a diameter/calibre? Looks old.

HH!
TBGO

 

[ModernDayWarrior]

Here's a silver dollar next to it.

 

[The Beep Goes On]

Hmmm...still clueless. I don't think any modern rounds have that ring. Good luck with the ID.

HH!
TBGO

 

[Nitro 54]

The ring is for crimping the bullet. Pistol or lever rifle type. From the size it looks to be from a 38 caliber.

 

[ModernDayWarrior]

Any idea how old?

 

[SomeGuy]

It looks to me like a full metal jacket, albeit discolored. I've never seen a crimping groove on a cast bullet, they usually have larger (normally 2 or more, but some have only one) lubrication grooves.

Does it have a copper alloy outer jacket, or is it solid lead-alloy throughout?

A jacketed bullet would be late 19th century-21st century. Jackets were not needed until the advent of smokeless powder.

 

[Gribnitz]

It's rifled, so not too terribly old but the color gives it some age. Once lead starts turning that whitish color it has been in the ground a long time. 75, 80, maybe 100 years ? No telling, but its not civil war.

 

[hasbeen]

I scaled the bullet with my calipers and it scales to .38 caliber.It is probably a .38 S&W or a .38 S&W Special,it was not fired from a S&W revolver though because the rifling marks are right handed.

hasbeen